Fresh Market, Whole Foods Seek Approval From Boards

By Amos Maki

Two planned high-profile grocery stores will be seeking regulatory approval in the coming weeks.

The Fresh Market is applying for a special-use permit from the Land Use Control Board Dec. 12 to convert the existing Ike’s store on Union Avenue into one of the chains upscale grocery stores.

Fresh Market wants to remove the existing asphalt drive-through along the building’s west side and replace it with sidewalk areas, remove existing parking spaces in front of the building and add more sidewalk space and create new parking spaces where the gas pumps and canopy once stood. Fresh Market also plans to turn the Ike’s drive-through canopy into retail space.

Meanwhile, the team behind a new Whole Foods location will seek approval from the Germantown Planning Commission Dec. 3. If approved at the Dec. 3 public meeting, the project will proceed to the city’s Board of Mayor and Aldermen on Dec. 19.

Cypress Realty Holdings, in conjunction with Ford Jarratt Realty & Development Co., in October submitted plans to the city of Germantown to develop a 41,000-square-foot, freestanding Whole Foods store.

The proposed store would be on the southeast corner of the intersection of Poplar Avenue and Pete Mitchell Road, on the eastern edge of Germantown’s Central Business District and across Poplar from the Germantown Collection shopping center. The store is expected to employ 100-150 people.

While one of the largest lease transactions of the year was made official this week when the state of Tennessee officially inked its lease to occupy around 100,000 square feet of space at One Commerce Square, another major lease still has not officially been consummated.

Wright Medical Group is in the process of finalizing its lease to move its corporate headquarters from Arlington to the wooded office park at 1023 Cherry Road. Wright Medical in August was awarded a 15-year tax freeze to allow the company to retain 225 jobs, add 35 new jobs and invest $10.6 million into a new headquarters. Company officials said at the time that they hoped the transaction would be complete by the end of the year.

In other leasing news, Pure Barre in Germantown is moving from its current location.

Pure Barre, a franchise owned locally by Kimberly Morgan and Lindsey Laurenzi, has leased 2,018 square feet at the Germantown Collection Shopping Center. Pure Barre is a national franchise that focuses on using ballet barre movements for exercise and toning. Andrew Phillips with Colliers International Memphis represented the tenant while Ed Thomas with Colliers International Memphis represented the landlord, GA Poplar Avenue Germantown LLC.

The Covington Way and Crestview properties have seen a flurry of leasing activity.

At the 126,500-square-foot Covington Way I property, L&J Service Centers has leased 6,000 square feet while PDI Solutions leased another 6,000 square feet.